Matthew 26:36 (KJV) Then cometh Jesus with them unto a place called Gethsemane, and saith unto the disciples, Sit ye here, while I go and pray yonder.
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Sermon Notes:
The Lord’s Table having been finished, and Judas having went out to betray our Master, Jesus leads His disciples to a Garden called Gethsemane.
Gethsemane means “very fat or plentiful”. It was a place where olives were pressed to squeeze the oil out of them. The oil press of Gethsemane was said to be in the middle of an olive garden, a wonderful and prosperous place.
It was in this Garden that Jesus Christ – the Last Adam – would wrestle in prayer with His Father. It was in this Garden that Jesus would prepare for Calvary.
We call Jesus “The Last Adam” because of what we are told in 1st Corinthians 15. The Apostle started that Chapter by presenting the Gospel message. This message is that:
1 Corinthians 15:3-5 (KJV) … Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; 4 And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures: 5 And that he was seen …
This Gospel has never changed.
Jesus died. Why? FOR OUR SINS.
Jesus was buried. Why? BECAUSE HE DIED.
Jesus rose again. Why? TO CONQUER DEATH.
He conquered death. Why did Jesus have to go through these things. Why did He have to “drink the cup of suffering”? The Apostle tells us that …
1 Corinthians 15:45-49 (KJV) And so it is written, The FIRST man Adam was made a living soul; the LAST Adam was made a quickening spirit. 46 Howbeit that was not first which is spiritual, but that which is natural; and afterward that which is spiritual. 47 The first man is of the earth, earthy: the second man is the Lord from heaven. 48 As is the earthy, such are they also that are earthy: and as is the heavenly, such are they also that are heavenly. 49 And as we have borne the image of the earthy, we shall also bear the image of the heavenly.
The First Adam – our forefather – was created from the dust of the earth “and made a living soul” (Genesis 2:7). God breathed into Him the breath of life. He received the image of God.
But the Second Adam “is the Lord from Heaven”.
Jesus is the Only Begotten, the Sent Son.
John 3:17 (KJV) For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.
The First Adam was given an Eden. Eden means the Garden of God. It was a place of fatness, a place of richness. The First Adam was given a Garden that was perfect that he was to till, and a fruit that he was forbidden to eat.
The Last Adam was brought to a Gethsemane, a “Garden of Fatness”. It was not a Garden of God, but it was a rich place nonetheless.
The First Adam was given a fruit NOT to eat, and he failed because he listened to a serpent.
The Last Adam was given a Cup He must drink, and He would because He obeyed God.
Romans 5:12 (KJV)12 Wherefore, as BY ONE MAN (the First Adam) sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned:
What Adam did in the Garden of Eden would bring sin into an otherwise sinless world. Where there was no death, death would come. Men die because of what Adam did. We have cancer, Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s, all types of disease because of sin. There was no sin in the original creation, but the First Adam brought it in by his act of disobedience.
Gethsemane Shows Us Sin Is No Trifle
In our world today sin is but a trifle. We think of sins as
little sins
BIG SINS
I am sure that the serpent whispered to Adam:
“It’s just ONE fruit”
“It’s just ONE indiscretion”
Who’s to know?
Sin is an affront to a holy and righteous God. Sin says to God “I know better than You know. My thoughts are better than Yours. My will is greater than Yours. My design is superior to Yours.”
None of these things are true. When Jesus entered Gethsemane He said to eight of His disciples:
Matthew 26:36 (KJV) … Sit ye here, while I go and pray yonder.
But then we read:
Matthew 26:37 (KJV) And he took with him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, and began to be sorrowful and very heavy.
Jesus took Peter, James, and John with Him to pray because He wanted the Leaders of His Coming Church to understand that sin is not a trifle. Sin is disobedience to God’s clear command. Sin is to do what God says not to do, and not to do what God says do.
As Peter, James, and John watched Jesus ..
He began to be sorrowful and very heavy.
The word translated “sorrowful” is the Present Passive Infinitive of λυπέω lypeō. The disciples had never seen Jesus overwhelmed, but now they do. Jesus is consumed with sorrow and grief. “Very Heavy” is the Greek Present Active Infinitive of ἀδημονέω adēmoneō which means “to be in great anguish or depression”. The Passive Voice shows that Jesus received the action. Jesus was hit with sorrow because He knew He was going to be judged for our sins. Sin would be poured out on Him. reflecting on this the Active Voice shows Jesus’ response. The thought of having to confront sin covered Him with sorrow, and brought depression to Him.
Jesus had never sinned, but what soon to stand in the sinner’s place.
And this brought anguish and depression to His life.
Sin is a perversion of God’s design, a mocking of God’s moral character. Sin hurts people, but it hurts God more. Jesus is hurt by the very thought of what He must do on Calvary.
Sin hurts God.
Sin offends God.
We were created to be mirrors of God. We are “made in God’s image”, and His moral Laws are written in our hearts. When we reject His Laws and harden our conscience we hurt ourselves, we hurt creation, and we hurt God. When Joseph was a slave of Potiphar in Egypt, Potiphar’s wife tried to have adulterous sex with Joseph. That precious brother rightly said:
Genesis 39:8-10 (ESV) {Joseph} refused and said to his master’s wife, “Behold, with me here, my master does not concern himself with anything in the house, and he has put all that he owns in my charge. 9 There is no one greater in this house than I, and he has withheld nothing from me except you, because you are his wife. HOW THEN COULD I DO THIS GREAT EVIL AND SIN AGAINST GOD?”
Every sin is ultimately a slap in God’s face. When King David had Uriah killed so that he could take his wife in an adulterous relationship – and David was found out – the King repented, saying:
Psalm 51:2-4 (NASB) … Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity And cleanse me from my sin. 3 For I know my transgressions, And my sin is ever before me. 4 AGAINST YOU, YOU ONLY, I HAVE SINNED AND DONE WHAT IS EVIL IN YOUR SIGHT, So that You are justified when You speak And blameless when You judge.
Since God is infinite, every offense against God is infinite. The effects of our sins do not diminish with time nor distance. When we offend the Lord, we are offending the Great I AM, the Ever Present and never diminishing God.
Matthew 26:38 (KJV) Then saith {Jesus} unto them, My soul is exceeding sorrowful, even unto death: tarry ye here, and watch with me.
Jesus said that “I am exceedingly sorrowful – even unto death”. Was it because He was going to have to die on the Cross? No! The Scripture tells us that …
Matthew 16:21 (ESV) From that time Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised.
Mark 9:31 (ESV) for he was teaching his disciples, saying to them, “The Son of Man is going to be delivered into the hands of men, and they will kill him. And when he is killed, after three days he will rise.”
Jesus was born to die. He was begotten once among humanity so that He could die once for humanity. Jesus did not dread death unto death. He knew His mission was to die. What Jesus agonized over was the cup of wrath that He must drink.
Ephesians 5:2 (ESV) …. Christ loved us and gave Himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.
Jesus knew that He was going to do this. He knew He was the Lamb of God, without spot or blemish. He knew He would die for the sins of His people. But the Cup of God’s Wrath for sin gave Him deep and horrid depression. Jesus normally needed no one to do what He did, but in this instance as He prepared He asked Peter, James, and John to:
Tarry here, and watch with Me
Jesus Prayed
Matthew 26:39 (KJV) {Jesus} went a little further, and fell on his face, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt.
As Jesus prepared to drink the Cup of God’s Wrath for Sin He prayed. Jesus prayed:
O My Father, if it be possible, let THIS CUP pass from Me
God is angry with sin. God is wrathful against evil. The Lord declares:
Ezekiel 18:4 (ESV) Behold, all souls are mine; the soul of the father as well as the soul of the son is mine: the soul who sins shall die.
It is God Who gives us life. He causes us. He gives us souls. We belong to Him. Sin says “I belong to myself. I am MY GOD. I am the center of the universe.” The Philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche – the son of a Lutheran pastor – rejected God. He declared
“God is dead. God remains dead. And we have killed him.”
Sin says “we are gods – we do not need to moral compass of God’s Word”. Nietzsche ended up insane, dying of frontotemporal dementia. It is insanity to walk apart from God. The Psalmist wrote:
Psalm 75:8 (NKJV) For in the hand of the Lord there is a cup, And the wine is red; It is fully mixed, and He pours it out; Surely its dregs shall all the wicked of the earth – Drain and drink down.
And John the Revelator said:
Revelation 14:10 (KJV) The same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his indignation; and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb:
Jesus prayed in Gethsemane – a place He had often prayed at – “If possible, let this Cup pass from Me”. Yet Jesus went on to say:
Nevertheless, not My Will, but Thine be done.
At Calvary Jesus would drain God’s Cup of Wrath, His burning anger, down to the last drop. God poured out His wrath on His Son full strength, without mixture. Old Time Preacher Andrew Bonar said:
“The universe saw Him with {this Cup} at His lips. It was our cup of trembling; the cup in which the wrath due to the “multitude which no man can number” was mingled. What wrath, what woe! A few drops made Him cry, “Now is my soul troubled!” In the garden, the sight of it wrung out the strange, mysterious words, “Sorrowful unto death!” Though God-man, He staggered at what He saw, and went on trembling. Next day, on Calvary, He drank it all. I suppose the three hours of darkness may have been the time when He “was wringing out the dregs”; for then arose from His broken heart the wail that so appealed to the heart of the Father, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me!” As He ended the last drop, and cried out, “It is finished!” We may believe angels felt an inconceivable relief— and even the Father Himself! So tremendous was the wrath and curse!—the wrath and curse due to our sin.”
The Apostle said:
2 Corinthians 5:21 (NKJV) For {God} made {His Son} who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.
Jesus prayed.
Jesus fell on His face.
He pushed Himself down into the ground.
He humbled Himself before God.
Jesus prayed ALONE.
Matthew 26:40-41 (KJV) And he cometh unto the disciples, and findeth them asleep, and saith unto Peter, What, could ye not watch with me one hour? [41] Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation: the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.
Peter was the disciple who said “I will never leave You, Jesus”. But Peter could not even stay awake for one hour. Jesus told Peter
“Watch AND Pray”
“The Spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak”
If Adam had prayed and sought God before he ate that which was forbidden, then the world would not be in sin. If David had prayed before taking Bathsheba to himself, Uriah would never have been murdered and the sword would not have consumed David’s dynasty. Pray before you sin. Watch for sin. Jesus prayed, and looked to the Father.
And the Father answered His prayers. The second time Jesus prayed His prayer changed. The first time He said “If it be possible, let this Cup pass from Me”. But now He prays:
Matthew 26:42 (KJV) He went away again the second time, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if this cup may not pass away from me, except I drink it, thy will be done.
He now did not pray that the Cup pass, but that the Father’s will be done. Jesus was willing to go forward for us. The Bible says that He
Matthew 26:43-44 (KJV) And he came and found them asleep again: for their eyes were heavy. [44] And he left them, and went away again, and prayed the third time, SAYING THE SAME WORDS.
“if this cup may not pass away from me, except I drink it, thy will be done”
Jesus was prepared to drink the Cup of God’s Wrath. I praise Him daily that He did. We who believe in Him shall not see wrath – but we shall see LIFE. The
John 3:35-36 (KJV) The Father loveth the Son, and hath given all things into his hand. [36] He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him.
The unbeliever still has a cup that he or she must drink. It is the Cup of God’s wrath. That’s the bad news. God’s wrath abides on the unbeliever who will not stand up for Christ. God’s wrath is like a sword hanging above the head. It can fall at any time. But for those who are in Christ they are not Children of wrath, but Children of Life. The Apostle declared:
Colossians 3:1-10 (KJV) If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God. [2] Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth. [3] For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God. [4] When Christ, who is our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with him in glory. [5] Mortify therefore your members which are upon the earth; fornication, uncleanness, inordinate affection, evil concupiscence, and covetousness, which is idolatry: [6] For which things’ sake the wrath of God cometh on the children of disobedience: [7] In the which ye also walked some time, when ye lived in them. [8] But now ye also put off all these; anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy communication out of your mouth. [9] Lie not one to another, seeing that ye have put off the old man with his deeds; [10] And have put on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him:
We who are His are no longer under the Wrath of God. Jesus drank that cup for us, praise His Holy Name. We rest in Jesus. Jesus said:
Matthew 26:45-46 (KJV) Then cometh he to his disciples, and saith unto them, Sleep on now, and take your rest: behold, the hour is at hand, and the Son of man is betrayed into the hands of sinners. [46] Rise, let us be going: behold, he is at hand that doth betray me.
Sleep on – rest! Jesus is being delivered into the hands of sinners for our salvation.
Rise – let us be going! Follow Jesus.
Rest in what Jesus has done. Move forward in the Will of God.
You were the Word at the beginning
One With God the Lord Most High
Your hidden glory in creation
Now revealed in You our Christ
What a beautiful Name it is
What a beautiful Name it is
The Name of Jesus Christ my King
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